Your dreams, ideas and creativity have carried you to the point
where you are now the proud owner of your own business. Now is
the time when your success or failure will be determined. Your
doors are open for business, but do people know that you are
here? Take the time to analyze your marketing efforts and make
sure that the message is getting to the appropriate audience. Your
customers are out there, you just need to find them.
Since print and TV ads are so expensive, people starting new
businesses need to find new ways to advertise. There are many
options that are out there, each with some pros and cons.
Advertising by direct mail, and it's email counterpart are used by
many companies successfully. This is the kind of advertising that is
guaranteed to reach the customer and may claim their attention.
There are many problems with this method, unfortunately. The
beginning is the cost. Sending them in the mail takes a lot of
money (paper, ink, stamps) and labor (printing, folding, stuffing,
addressing). The same amount of labor is needed for direct mail
delivered by electronic means, but the monetary costs are
eliminated. Keep in mind that spam filtering in most email
programs, will limit the reach of electronic direct mail. Also, alot of
this type of direct mailing is thrown away, without a customer ever
opening it. This isn't the best form of advertising for new
companies, due to its major drawbacks.
An ad in the Yellow Pages was once close to a requirement for a
business to succeed. At that time, businesses advertised in the
Yellow Pages because they knew customers would look there first
when they needed goods and services. In the past several years,
however, the Internet has taken over the phone book as the main
source for information gathering by customers. A large percentage
of people have no landlines, and thus don't have local phone
books. Using the yellow pages may be a good approach for the
secondary market, but it cannot be used as the main way to reach
your new customers.
There are many places online where potential customers go and
create profiles of themselves. By capitalizing on the information
that they have already provided you with, you may be able to
personalize the message that you put out there. Get involved
online with different social groups. You may be surprised to find
how open people are to supporting you when you choose to
interact with them socially on a bulletin board or other online
meeting place.
A lead-generating web site is probably the best single ad source
for businesses that provide services. These websites will give
companies access to the personal information of customers who
sign up with the site and request information. You will have to pay
for the setup of the account and background check, as well as, a
fee for each lead. The ability to reach interested customers directly,
either by phone or email is invaluable. These services help
businesses look respectable by allowing them to use the
company's logo.
For better or for worse, the most publicity that you get will come
from your current customers. Make sure that you treat them well
so that the word of mouth messages about you and your business
are positive. As people talk, your reputation will grow, and as your
reputation grows, so will the enterprise that you have poured
yourself into.
Robert Dugan is a successful businessman in California and continually monitors his adverting campaigns for effectiveness and recommends using placement agencies for
Sacramento outdoor advertising. Billboard Connection of Sacramento helps find the best media mix for all your Northern
California billboard advertising needs.
